


What's the Matter, Sweetheart?

by themutesinger



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Cuties, M/M, getting together fic, southern slang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-05
Updated: 2015-05-05
Packaged: 2018-03-29 01:38:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3877447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themutesinger/pseuds/themutesinger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bitty starts calling Jack "sweetheart" and "honey" and Jack's confused (read: secretly happy) about it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What's the Matter, Sweetheart?

**Author's Note:**

> I thank the Lord for this comic because not only is it perfect and amazing but it gets my mind on something that's not tolkienverse and I love it! :)

Stumbling into the kitchen to find Bitty in front of the Haus' ancient oven was definitely  _not_ a surprise to Jack. Sure he was up a little earlier than normal, but it wasn't that unusual.

"Mornin', Jack! What kind of eggs do you want, honey?" At this Jack blanched, the endearment ringing in his ears and bouncing around in his brain. Apparently he had been staring at Bittle for an uncomfortable amount of time because the younger man was scratching the back of neck and his eyes were wide with concern.

"Uh, scrambled?" Jack says, shaking off his weird reverie and heading to the fridge to grab a glass of Orange juice in order to avoid looking at Bittle and get his thoughts under control. 

"Alright then."

\---

"Jack, sweetheart, are we still doin' morning practice tomorrow?" Bitty says, popping his head into Jack's room, his usual sugar-sweet smile on his face. A smile that slips as all he gets is Jack glaring at him for a solid two minutes. "Is this a bad time? I can come back later..."

"No! It's fine... And uh, yeah, we still have practice tomorrow. So, uh, eat your protein, eh?" Bitty raises an eyebrow and nods his assent, slipping out of the room muttering 'What in the Lord's name was that?'.

\---

The third time it happens Jack swears he's going to be prepared. He slips off the ice, then turns to help Bittle off, holding a hand out to assist him. 

"Why thank you sweetheart," Bitty says, a bright smile taking up most of Jack's vision. With a light pat on the shoulder Bitty's off to the change room. Jack turns to Shitty, blue eyes begging for an answer and all he gets is a shrug and an amused smile. 

\---

Sitting on his unmade bed and thinking about Bitty and the warm, happy feeling he unwillingly got every time he heard a sweet " _Jack, honey..._ " Or " _Thanks sweetheart!_ " was doing nothing to help with the dizzy feeling of contentment and the hope that maybe his- admittedly mostly subconscious- attraction to Bittle was far from one-sided. The thought unknowingly puts a smile on his face and he wipes it away with a sigh. A rumbling growl brings his attention to the smell of a fresh pie and Jack slinks off his bed, ambling down the stairs to convince Bitty to give him the first slice. An alarmed gasp of "Chowder!" has him quickening his pace and he rounds the door to the kitchen just in time to hear, "Oh, Chowder, honey, how did that happen?" And his heart sinks. He watched Bitty hand Chowder an ice pack for a purpling eye and run a soothing hand up and down his back.

"I, uh, took a bit of an elbow to the eye during one of Dex and Nursey's fights. Not that they fight all the time- who am I kidding of course they do... But they didn't hit me on purpose!"

"Of course not sweetheart. Oh Jack, everything alright?" Bitty asks, looking up for the first time and noticing him in the doorway. Jack forced a half-twitch of his lips and walked over to the fridge, pulling out some cold pizza and a pop.

"Yeah, just grabbing some food. Keep that ice on, eh, Chowder? I want you in good shape for our next game." Chowder nods frantically, still not completely over his hero-worship phase, but Bitty looks at him suspiciously and Jack scurries out of the kitchen as fast as he can without losing his atypical "Zimmermann Cool".

\---

 "Hey Shitty?" Jack says, knocking on the door just about the hole. 

"C'mon in brah!" Jack rolls his eyes and steps into Shitty's room, keeping his eyes at chest level in order to avoid an unwanted eyeful. "Uh-oh. I know that look, that constipated face can only mean one thing- you want to talk feelings." 

"Maybe this wasn't a good idea... I'll just go-"

"Oh no you don't! Take a seat you represed little robot and tell Uncle Shitty what's bothering you." Jack reluctantly shuts the door and gingerly sits on the smelly beanbag beside the desk. 

"Well, it's about... Bitty." 

"Finally figured out how you feel about him, huh?"

"How did you-? Well, I guess. Anyways, he calls me... Pet names sometimes."

"He always does that though? It's like a Southern thing."

"Well I know that now! It's just I thought it was something else and now I'm confused." Shitty rubs his face with a hand and sighs.

"Oh boy. Have you considered talking to Bitty about it?"

"What? No! Of course not!"

"Well, you should. I have it on good authority that he likes you and if you talk to him all your weirdo problems will be solved." 

"Are you sure?" Jack asks, eyes narrowed skeptically.

"Positive."

\---

 Bitty is sliding two pies in the oven when he makes his way in the kitchen, and from the rich scent of ground beef and spices Jack was going with tourtiere. 

"Uh, Bits, can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Of course you can sweetheart! What's the matter?" Bitty replies, deftly unknotting his apron strings to drape it over the back of a chair. 

"That! When you call me things like that..."

"Oh," Bitty says, sounding put out. "Well, if it makes you uncomfortable I can stop? It just slips out I guess... I say it to all my friends..."

"No! It's not that it's... I uh... Mon Dieu... I don't want to be your friend." The look of overwhelming hurt that crosses Eric's face when he says that makes Jack's heart clench in more ways than he can count. "No, no, no! That's not what I meant!"

"Jack, I'm really confused right now."

"I know, I just..."

"Suck at talking feelings?"

"Yeah... I guess what I meant to say is I don't just want to be your friend." Surprise colours Bitty's face a light pink and a slow smile crawls over his face. 

"All right, I can work with that. Next time though, you should lead with that. Okay Sugar?"

"Okay. I've never heard you use that one before." Jack says with a smile. 

"That's 'cuz that one's saved for someone real special." Bitty says with a wink, leaning in to kiss Jack's cheek. Jack smirks and moves his head at the last second so their lips meet instead. ' _I can definitely work with this_ ' Bitty thinks.

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I in no way own these adorable characters or the marvellous webcomic they come from and no financial gain comes from my fan fiction :)


End file.
